(CNN) – The latest television attack from Mitt Romney's campaign hits President Barack Obama for his 2008 campaign slogan "hope and change," using clips of television pundits wondering if that pitch has expired in the 2012 contest.

"It seems like a lifetime ago that candidate Obama was talking about hope and change. Today, after four years of broken promises, President Obama is left to simply run 'negative' and 'inaccurate' ads," read a statement accompanying the ad's release.

The spot uses clips of television personalities questioning the increasing negativity of Obama's 2012 campaign. CBS host Bob Schieffer, shown during an interview with Obama senior adviser David Axelrod, wonders in the ad: "Whatever happened to hope and change? Now it seems he's just coming right out of the box with these old-fashioned, negative ads."

On his show Sunday, Schieffer reacted to the new Romney spot, saying the campaign hadn't sought permission to use his clip.

"That was a question that I posed to David Axelrod for the president's campaign manager. I wasn't stating something there. I was asking somebody else a question," Schieffer said.

David Brooks, the New York Times columnist, also appears in the ad. He's shown saying on NBC in May: "By starting negative, by going extremely tough and extremely hard, looking conventional, and frankly running ads that are inaccurate."

And Mark Halperin, a Time magazine columnist, is shown saying on MSNBC in June: "Barack Obama's campaign and allies will run more negative ads against this Republican nominee, in 2012, than have ever been run in the history of the world."

Halperin also weighed in on clips of him being used in Romney's ad:

To echo what NBC News' Tom Brokaw said in January, when his image and voice were used in a Romney campaign TV ad (cont.)

On CNN on Sunday, Axelrod responded to the allegation that the Obama campaign has relied too heavily on negative campaigning, saying its rivals were equally responsible for airing negative spots.

"Ninety percent of the ads that have been run by Romney and his allies since March have been negative and aimed at the president, so I think it's a mistake to say that our advertising has somehow been more negative," Axelrod said.

On Saturday, Obama's campaign released its latest negative ad, which features Romney singing "America the Beautiful" while the ad flashes the names of countries where the Obama campaign charges Romney either "shipped jobs," "outsourced," or stored portions of his financial portfolio.

“Mitt Romney can continue to run ads bemoaning serious questions about his career as a corporate buyout specialist, but he can’t run from his record of leading investments in companies that were ‘pioneers’ in outsourcing and investing in foreign tax havens and offshore accounts," Smith wrote. "It’s time for him to come clean about his involvement at Bain Capital from 1999 to 2002 and follow decades of precedent set by his own father and release additional tax returns."

soundoff(76 Responses)

Stephen in VA

We're getting a little bit childish and off the mark here, folks. It's relevant to criticize Romney's past professional career as part of his interviewing for the job of POTUS. It's relevant to criticize Obama's past performance as POTUS as part of his interviewing for four more years of it. What I'd rather people get upset about is all the lies. Be as negative as you feel the need to be in your heart of hearts, candidates, but for the love of God, tell the honest truth.

July 15, 2012 02:30 pm at 2:30 pm |

djrashn

When Romney or the party of NO actually comes up with a plan, other than attack the POTUS, call him a muslim, challenge his birth certificate, fillibusters, blocking all of his legislation, lawsuits, claim he isn't african american because his father was an arab, try to get his college grades, distort his proposals, etc...I could go on forever. THEN they can justifiably complain if the only ads the Obama campaign runs are negative. Until then, instead of crying, try to come up with ideas to work WITH President Obama to restore the middle class, and put America back to work.

July 15, 2012 02:30 pm at 2:30 pm |

Nurul Aman

Americans deserve the honesty from Mitt Romney's personal finance. Being a presidential candidate, failure of filing tax return for 2011 by the deadline bring a fundamental question about his efficiency in keeping good record of his personal finance. His inability to disclose his finance in a timely manner, and not knowing about details of his blind trust investment in Bermuda, and lack of transparency of his role at Bain capital in 2000 and 2001 clearly disqualify for his qualification to be elected for the Presidency.

July 15, 2012 02:30 pm at 2:30 pm |

Jules

Of course – the Romney billionaires ran over all of the primary contenders with negative ads. Can you even imagine the right wing apoplexy if the Democrats ran someone for president with the questions hanging over Romney's finances? Also, the GOP was perfectly fine with going after John Kerry for his statement that he was for it before he was against it and now their nominee was for it before he was against it before he was for it and before he was against it before that and not on just one issue mind you, but on a host of issues. We are talking about a whole party that has no integrity. We are talking about Tea Party members that have no integrity. Too bad all this didn't come out before they picked a nominee, because my guess is, we ain't seen nothin' yet.

July 15, 2012 02:31 pm at 2:31 pm |

fred37ify

Wow ! Barrack attacks Romney over a union paper mill closing ! Does that mean Romney is responsible for Oldsmobile, Pontiac, Mercury and Plymouth closing ??? Or is it possible that Barrack and his U N I O N buddies forced those companies into bankruptcy ????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????

July 15, 2012 02:31 pm at 2:31 pm |

Debbie

Romney is right....Hope and Change. Obama can talk the talk but can't walk the walk. Obama has said washington is the same as it was four years ago. why can't he keep his promises and not run again? He said he would close Gitmo, work on unfair NAFTA and a lot of other things. The only thing he has accomplished is Healthcare which he denies being a tax. Duh, Obama, the Supreme court ruled it as a tax. 21 if them. It will be a big failure. Obama wants the US to go European style. In four years he's got us halfway there as a welfare country. All he does is attack Romney. He's doing absolutely nothing for the economy. Now I am curious if he will sign the new bill coming up to stop all aid to Pakistan if the doctor isn't released. I'm embarrassed I voted for him in 2008 and will not again. I'm so sick of hearing him whine and blame others for his mistakes. I'm embarrassed he supports killing babies, supports gays and other immoralities. I do not like the way he plays the Latinos for idiots. wow, if any Latinos read this spread the word, get your two year work permit and in two years he will know exactly where you are to deport you. I hope people sit ack the next few months and think hard about what he is doing and what he hasn't done. I want to be proud of the US. Vote him out!

July 15, 2012 02:32 pm at 2:32 pm |

Mrs. KATZ

Mitt, the Outsourcer-in-Chief, is a pathetic hypocrite. He excoriated Gingrich in the primary campaign and now he's begging Obama to apologize. Disgusting.

July 15, 2012 02:38 pm at 2:38 pm |

Debby

Schieffer doesn't own the clip it goes out to millions of people in their homes when he actually said it. This is free journalism. If people are going public with their views its fair game. The same with the Obama campaign on bain and the SEC.

July 15, 2012 02:39 pm at 2:39 pm |

Nodack

99.9999999999999999999999999999999999999999% of all campaign ads are negative ads bashing the other candidate.

Doing a negative ad to complain about another candidates negative ads is pretty silly. Negative ads don't work on me, they have the opposite effect. If you can't stand on your merits and have to instead bash the other guy over the head in order to try to make yosurself look better, than you are weak.

July 15, 2012 02:47 pm at 2:47 pm |

Tired already

Which is the pot and which is the kettle?

July 15, 2012 02:48 pm at 2:48 pm |

wisconsin101

Yesterday it was Obama being negative, today it is Romney. Who cares about the fluff. I want to know what each are going to do in the next fours years and what each's ideology is. That is all that matters.

July 15, 2012 02:49 pm at 2:49 pm |

oknotokok

The republican party of no is on the verge of extintion. OLD, BITTER AND DYING!!!

July 15, 2012 02:49 pm at 2:49 pm |

Ricke1949

OK. What has the president done. Tout his record and compare it to his promises. Slandering another person is evil, very evil. Americans want a solution not more fecal ads. We want honesty not politics as usual. We hope Washington's swamp is drained. The country is getting ready for a schism and a bad one if you all do not get your act together. How about some truly virtuous behavior.

July 15, 2012 02:51 pm at 2:51 pm |

JDinHouston

Attack ads only hurt when they have enough truth to make them stick. Romney's problem isn't attack ads, it is that they point out a trail of deception in a carefully crafted script of how Romney went from being a liberal Republican in Massachusetts to being the severely conservative candidate of today. It is a trail of off shore investments, off-shoring jobs, carefully scripted positions of how he was pro-gay rights and pro Planned Parenthood to now opposing both, carefully scripted roles about what he was involved in and not involved in, and tax returns that probably will show he paid little to no taxes on his huge gains from American jobs being shipped overseas by his company. Those attributes might be great in business, but they are lousy in a president. He might as well just toss his dog on the roof of his car and drive back home.

July 15, 2012 02:53 pm at 2:53 pm |

howard

Its obvious Obama has nothing else to depend on but running negative adds. The best thing Romney can do is to start running positive adds. It will make Obama look even more pathetic than he already is.

July 15, 2012 02:53 pm at 2:53 pm |

cj1

Its time that Obama shuts up and gets his facts straight. Anyone who believes Governor Romney is breaking the law is insane. He wouldnt be in his position if he were lying. Obama is the sheepish one. How much lower can he possibly go?

Obama should ask john m why he chose sarah after romney released twenty some years of tax returns. Stop the whining mitt.

July 15, 2012 02:55 pm at 2:55 pm |

michael

All i have to say is

Barack Obama....Feb 23, 2009 is calling himself a failure

“Today I’m pledging to cut the deficit we inherited in half by the end of my first term in office. This will not be easy. It will require us to make difficult decisions and face challenges we’ve long neglected. But I refuse to leave our children with a debt that they cannot repay — and that means taking responsibility right now, in this administration, for getting our spending under control.”

July 15, 2012 03:01 pm at 3:01 pm |

Ex-GOP Con

=================
LOL! now the Rich Money campaign is whining about negative ads IN THEIR OWN NEGATIVE AD?!?!?

Lol – Rich Money...is it a tax or is it penalty? Tax or penalty...tax/penalty.

Rich Money is the typical two-faced fork-tongued slimy politician and he is not ashamed about it.
==============

July 15, 2012 03:06 pm at 3:06 pm |

Jules

Romney be moanin' all the time and am sure there will be a lot more for him to be moanin' about.

July 15, 2012 03:08 pm at 3:08 pm |

jimmy

If Romney doesn't stop crying,come up with solutions and a plan to get things done,grow a pair,man up and get with the program he is over.He looks like a worn out old preacher who is no longer sure of his message.There is no fire in the belly with this guy.I'm not sure he really wants the job or just wants to play politics.

July 15, 2012 03:09 pm at 3:09 pm |

Dave, CA

Funny thing about all the GOP "candidates"- not one of them has come up with any kind of economic solution or jobs plan. Mitt thinks he can run on his experience with Bain as a job "creator" which is hilarious. He was a job killer with Bain. He was a huge outsourcer of American jobs. Now he whines when his record is brought up. Note to Mitt and the GOP, your clinging to tax cuts for the wealthy while obstructing any plan to move forward is the problem. I guess they can always obsess over gay marriage. It's really all they have left in their bag of tricks.

July 15, 2012 03:12 pm at 3:12 pm |

Mitt R'money is a crybaby

cry Bishop Flip-Flop cry! You and the other conservatives will have a lot to cry about after Nov! FOUR MORE YEARS for OBAMA!

July 15, 2012 03:13 pm at 3:13 pm |

Bob

How many more months of mud slinging? It would be nice if candidates would actually say, in real clear language, what they would do if elected. I recall Nixon, whom I voted for, saying he had a secret plan to end the Vietnam War...I guess he kept it a secret from everyone.